Research Article Journal of Orthoptera Research 2023, 32(1): 81-92 A new species of the genus Skejofeitix (Orthoptera, Tetrigidae) from Nepal MADAN SuBeb!!2 1 Agriculture Science Center, Directorate of Research and Extension, Agriculture and Forestry University, Ghyalchok, Gorkha, Nepal. 2 SIGTET-Special Interest Group Tetrigidae, Bonn, Germany. Corresponding author: Madan Subedi (madansubedil3 @gmail.com) Academic editor: Ming Kai Tan | Received 7 November 2022 | Accepted 14 December 2022 | Published 18 April 2023 https://zoobank. org/5AC1EC1 E-1809-42C4-AF61 -E8866571C5FD Citation: Subedi M (2023) A new species of the genus Skejotettix (Orthoptera, Tetrigidae) from Nepal. Journal of Orthoptera Research 32(1): 81-92. https://doi.org/10.3897/jor.32.97276 Abstract This paper describes a new species of Skejotetix Subedi, 2022, S. kasalo sp. nov., from the temperate forests of Bajung, Parbat, Nepal. The genus was known only from the subtropical regions of Nepal. The new species and its different life stages were observed in the natural habitat. It was found to have many colors that match perfectly with the surroundings. The genus Skejotettix was considered brachypronotal until now, but a macro- pronotal form was also found alongside the typical brachypronotal form in S. kasalo sp. nov. The macropronotal form is an important piece of the puzzle in determining the relationship between Skejotettix and Ergatetttix Kirby, 1914. Keywords Gandaki Province, habitat, Parbat District, pygmy grasshoppers, sloping grassland, taxonomy, temperate forests, Tetriginae Introduction Nepal is a biogeographical and geomorphological pearl of Asia (Bhuju 2007), immensely rich in biodiversity, comprising 69 spe- cies of tetrigids (Subedi 2022, this paper). This number is remark- able given the size of the country. However, the fauna of Tetrigi- dae is still an understudied group of Orthoptera in Nepal (Subedi 2022, Subedi and Kasalo in press). This is mainly attributed to the lack of local researchers, as the sparse information available on the group was studied and collected entirely by foreign research- ers (Chopard and Dreux 1966, Bey-Bienko 1968, Balderson and Yin 1987, Martens 1987, Ingrisch 1987, 2001a, b, 2006, Ingrisch and Garai 2001, Tumbrinck 2015). Now, with the advent of local researchers and collaborators, several species new to science have been discovered, and more information is available on these in- sects (Subedi 2022, Subedi and Kasalo in press). Skejotettix Subedi, 2022 is a genus endemic to Nepal, hith- erto comprising two small and brachypronotal subtropical spe- cies, S. netrajyoti Subedi, 2022 and S. muglingi (Ingrisch, 2001b) (Ingrisch 2001b, Subedi 2022). With the discovery of a new spe- cies of the genus from temperate regions, this paper aims to de- scribe this species, give insights into its ecology, and present some hypotheses on the evolutionary history of the genus. Materials and methods Museum abbreviations. — ICAG Insect collection of Agriculture Science Center, Ghyal- chok, Gorkha, Nepal. Fieldwork.—The new species was spotted for the first time while photographing a Criotettix cf. bispinosus on a lichen-covered stone amid Crofton weed bushes (Fig. 2A) near the freshwater stream of Panikhola, Bajung, Parbat on 28" September 2022. Only a single individual female was spotted at that locality. Later on the same day, an adult male and a nymph were spotted on a clifftop of Bas- nee Gaun. More individuals were found in Kafleko Pakho, a loca- tion around 500 meters north of Basnee Gaun, when investigated two days later. As an entire population of the species was found in Kafleko Pakho, it was selected as the type locality. The holotype and several paratypes were photographed in the wild, collected by hand, killed using an ethyl acetate killing jar, and pinned with Phusis stainless steel pins (size #0) for storage in a collection box. Additional material is represented by photographs taken in the field. The localities were visited on a regular basis over a period of a month (September-October 2022) to gain more insights into the life stages and ecology of the species. The vegetation in the type locality were identified first by their vernacular names with the help of local people, which were then checked for the appro- priate binomial names following Jnawali and Neupane (2021). This was again cross-checked with the help of images available on the internet. Fieldwork localities.—(Figs 1, 2). The localities investigated by the author are listed in Table 1. Copyright Madan Subedi. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. JOURNAL OF ORTHOPTERA RESEARCH 2023, 32(1) 82 M. SUBEDI Table 1. Investigated localities in Bajung, Parbat, Nepal, with local Nepali names, coordinates, elevations, brief habitat type descrip- tions, and video links to the locality. Kafleko Pakho is the type locality. Locality information Localities Kafleko Pakho Basnee Gaun Pani Khola Nepal arEaeY ORGY ae a ureft ter Coordinates 28.27626°N, 83.69860°E VSD 7521 NB a6 7 Ee 28.27569°N, 83.70610°E Elevation (m a.s.1.) 1920 (approx. ) 1880 (approx.) 1665 (approx.) Habitat type Countryside road amid sloping grassland Sloping grassland on the edge of a cliff Stream bank and forest Video link https://youtu.be/JtwmYAKEayo https://youtu.be/_B9wkh7LBRc https://youtube.com/shorts/PNub1-S_ b80?feature=share Fig. 1. Type locality of Skejotettix kasalo sp. nov., Kafleko Pakho, Bajung, Parbat. A. Sloping forest and grassland; B. Muddy walls along- side the dirt road through the type locality; C. Beautiful Annapurna and Mansiri Himal range seen from the type locality. JOURNAL OF ORTHOPTERA RESEARCH 2023, 32(1) M. SUBEDI 83 Fig. 2. Investigated localities from Bajung, Parbat, Nepal. A-C. Panikhola. A. Lichen-covered stone (indicated by a white arrow) amid Crofton weed bushes; B. Fresh water stream; C. Forest and bushes; D-E. Basnee Gaun. D. Pond and surroundings; E. Sloping grasslands. Identification, taxonomy, and nomenclature.—The morphological characters of the new species were compared with the original de- scriptions of the aforementioned species of the genus Skejotettix Subedi, 2022 (Ingrisch 2001b, Subedi 2022). Taxonomy follows the international database of Orthoptera, the Orthoptera Species File (OSF), version 5.0/5.0 (Cigliano et al. 2022). Nomenclature is in accordance with the 4" edition of the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature (ICZN 1999). Photography.—A Canon EOS 80D field camera, with a Canon mac- ro lens 100 mm 1:2.8 USM, was used for photographing the spe- cies in their natural habitat and for type digitalization. Photos and videos of the localities and habitats were taken by mobile phone cameras (Xiaomi Redmi Note 9 and Xiaomi Poco C3). Images of the pinned type series were post-processed with the software Pho- toshop 2022 v40.0. The scale was added after calibration with mil- limeter paper with ImageJ v1.53k software (Rueden et al. 2017). Morphological terminology and measurements.—Morphological ter- minologies follow Tumbrinck (2014), and measurements used follow Tumbrinck (2014) and Tan and Artchawakom (2015). The eye width and vertex width are measured as per Subedi and Kasalo (in press). Results Taxonomy Family Tetrigidae Rambur, 1838 Subfamily Tetriginae Rambur, 1838 Genus Skejotettix Subedi, 2022 Updated generic diagnosis.—Small-sized, macropronotal or brachy- pronotal genus. Antenna inserted between or lower than the ventral margins of compound eyes. Scapus of antenna with a large notch in lateral view. Frontal costa visible in front of the compound eyes in lateral view. Lateral carinae curved inward to the frontal costa in a more or less straight manner. Vertex narrower than the width of a compound eye. Median carina entire; raised in the anterior part of the pronotum. Wings extended beyond the pronotum, reduced, hidden, or absent. Femora robust. Type species. —Skejotettix netrajyoti Subedi, 2022. Composition.—Three species. S. netrajyoti, S. muglingi, and S. kasalo sp. nov. are currently known. Distribution.—Endemic to Nepal, the genus (with its three species) is distributed in subtropical and temperate regions. Skejotettix ne- trajyoti is known only from the subtropical Sal forest of Churl- ingtar, Ghyalchok, Gorkha (Subedi 2022). S. muglingi is known from the Trishuli River near the Mugling Bazar riverbed (Ingrisch 2001b); the stream banks of Buldi khola, Vyas Municipality, Tana- hun; in the vicinity of the manmade ponds of Ghadiyal Breeding Center, Kasara amid the subtropical Sal forest; and in the vicinity of the manmade ponds of Umari, Kapilvastu (Subedi 2022). Ske- jotettix kasalo sp. nov. is known from different localities of Bajung, Parbat, Nepal: Kafleko pakho (type locality), Basnee Gaun, and Panikhola. The locations are shown in Fig. 3. Skejotettix kasalo sp. nov. https://zoobank.org/EF029366-B317-40FB-912B-DAA2CO9F10C7 Justification of genus assignment.—The herein-described species conforms to the typical characters of the genus Skejotettix as men- tioned above in the diagnosis section. Etymology.—The species is named after Niko Kasalo, an emerg- ing tetrigidologist from Croatia and a good friend of mine. The JOURNAL OF ORTHOPTERA RESEARCH 2023, 32(1) 84 M. SUBEDI Fig. 3. Map of Nepal showing the distribution of Skejotettix. The district in green denotes the distribution of S. netrajyoti, with the pre- cise locality denoted by a black triangle. The districts in blue denote the distribution of S. muglingi, with the precise localities denoted by red hearts. The district in dark red denotes the distribution of S. kasalo, with the precise locality denoted by a yellow dot. The map is adapted after Sagarjkhatri, own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, wikimedia commons. The localities for S. muglingi and S. netrajyoti are based on the findings of Ingrisch (2001b) and Subedi (2022). (Note: The names in the map refer to the respective adjacent districts in color.) specific epitheton is a Latinized noun in apposition referring to the surname of Niko Kasalo (patronymic). Common name.—Bajung’s cliffhopper. Common name etymology.—tThe first part of the name is after the vil- lage of Bajung where the species was discovered. The second part of the name denotes the habitat type of the species. Type locality.—(Fig. 1) Kafleko Pakho, Bajung, Parbat, Nepal (Ne- pali: HMhetehl UAT, Tals, Wd, AUTer) situated at an altitude of 1920 m a.s.l. with GPS coordinates, 28.27626°N, 83.69860°E. The type locality is situated at the top decile of the hill of Ba- jung village, which has a cool temperate climate. The area is a part of the Dhiku-Maidan community forest with sloping terrain composed of grassland and forest. The ground vegetation in- cludes Ageratina adenophora (Spreng.) King & H. Rob., Anaphilis sp., Nephrolepis cordifolia (L.) C. Presl, Gnaphalium affine D. Don, Rubus ellipticus Sm under the cover of Symplocos theifolia D. Don, Daphniphyllum himalayense (K. Rosenthal), Rhododendron arboreum Sm., Schima wallichii (DC.) Korth, Prunus cerasoides D. Don., Eu- rya acuminata DC., Semecarpus anacardium L.f., Myrsine semiserrata Wall., Elaeagnus parvifolia Wall. ex Royale, and Myrica esculenta Buch.-Ham. ex D. Don. A dirt road (constructed in 2019) now runs through the locality; the road has mud walls, supporting a plethora of moss and algal growth. The holotype and several para- types, as well as additional materials, were collected and photo- graphed on these walls. Material examined.—Type material. Holotype (Fig. 5A—C): NEPAL e 2; Gandaki Province, Parbat District, Modi Rural Municipality, Bajung, Kafleko Pakho; 28.27626°N, 83.69860°E; 1920 m a.s.l; 30.1X.2022; M. Subedi leg.; countryside road amid sloping grass- land and forest, collected by hand, ICAG; ICAG-ORT-TETRI1. Paratypes.—(Figs 5D-L, 6) NEPAL ¢ 14; Gandaki Province, Parbat District, Modi Rural Municipality, Bajung, Basnee Gaun; 28.27321°N, 83.69778°E; 1880 m a.s.l; 28.IX.2022; M. Subedi leg., sloping grassland on the edge of a cliff, collected by hand, ICAG; ICAG-ORT-TETR2 ¢ 19; Gandaki Province, Parbat Dis- trict, Modi Rural Municipality, Bajung, Panikhola; 28.27569°N, 83.70610°E; 1665 m a.s.l; 28.1X.2022; M. Subedi leg.; stream bank; collected by hand, ICAG; ICAG-ORT-TETR3 ¢ 14; Gandaki Province, Parbat District, Modi Rural Municipality, Bajung, Kaf- leko Pakho; 28.27626°N, 83.69860°E; 1920 m a.s.l; 30.IX.2022; M. Subedi leg.; countryside road amid sloping grassland and for- est; collected by hand, ICAG; ICAG-ORT-TETR4 ¢ 19; Gandaki Province, Parbat District, Modi Rural Municipality, Bajung, Kafle- ko Pakho; 28.27626°N, 83.69860°E; 1920 maz.s.]; 11.X.2022; M. Subedi leg.; countryside road amids sloping grassland and forest, collected by hand, ICAG; ICAG-ORT-TETRS. Additional material.—Several adults and nymphs were photo- graphed in the wild to study the characters and variations among individuals. The videos recorded are uploaded to the social media platform YouTube (YouTube channel: Nepali Grasshop- pers, https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCp9QdbRCPSy19KZ- bnsPw_JQ). Photographic material.—The specimens of the type series in their natural habitat are shown in Fig. 4. Diagnosis.—Skejotettix kasalo differs from the type species of Ergatet- tix Kirby, 1914, E. dorsiferus (Walker, 1871) in having a wider vertex with parallel lateral borders instead of a narrow vertex with lateral borders usually converging towards the front, with convex vertex (in frontal view) without horns instead of being concave with the pres- ence of horns, and with the middle femora being robust instead of being slender. However, the species also share similarities: (i) pres- ence of a notch on the scapus of the antenna; (ii) wings extending beyond the pronotum (valid in macropronotal form of S. kasalo); (iii) antennal grooves distinctly below the ventral margins of com- pound eyes; and (iv) median carina (in lateral view) undulated. Skejotettix kasalo sp. nov. can be differentiated from other spe- cies of the genus by the set of characters listed in Table 2. JOURNAL OF ORTHOPTERA RESEARCH 2023, 32(1) M. SUBEDI Fig. 4. The type specimens of Skejotettix kasalo sp. nov. in their natural habitat. A-C. Holotype (); D-E. Paratype 1 (4); F-H. Paratype 2 (Q); I. Paratype 3 (3); J-L. Paratype 4 (9). JOURNAL OF ORTHOPTERA RESEARCH 2023, 32(1) 86 M. SUBEDI Table 2. Comparison of the diagnostic characteristics of the three currently known Skejotettix species. Character Upper point of insertion of the S. kasalo sp. nov. Below the lower margin of the antennal grooves compound eyes In line with the lower margin of the S. netrajyoti S. muglingi In line with the lower margin of the compound eyes compound eyes Pronotum Brachypronotal or macropronotal; | Brachypronotal, cuneate with apex | Brachypronotal, obtuse-angularly apex bluntly rounded emarginate rounded Alae Produced distinctly beyond or Reduced Reduced, absent, or hidden slightly shy of the pronotum Median carina (in lateral view) Distinctly undulated Undulated Relatively uniform Claws Larger Shorter Shorter Infrascapular area Intermediate in width Narrower Widened Scutellum (in relation to scapus) Wider Almost as same width Narrower Habitat Temperate forests Description.—Head: Eyes reniform. Top margin of eyes higher than vertex. Vertex low and flat between lateral carinae of vertex. Frontal costa bifurcates at around half length of compound eye from top. Facial carinae divergent, forming scutellum as wide as scapus before widening distinctly at bottom. Lateral carinae of vertex following outline of eye anteriorly; curved inward, al- most straight at half-length of frontal costa from the top. Nod- ules distinct from top of vertex to halfway of compound eye. Paired ocelli placed at about bottom third. Top margin of anten- nal groove below lower margin of compound eyes. Minute hairs distributed all over face. Caudal margin of eye not in contact with anterior margin of pronotum. Vertex below top margin of eyes. Frontal costa visible as straight in front of anterior level of eyes, incurves halfway from top of compound eye, diverges into two facial carinae and runs straight down to lower margin of compound eye. Facial carinae curve outwards, forming a convex protrusion. Head exserted above general surface of pronotum, vertex approximately at level of elevation in anterior part of pro- notum. Hairs present in lower half of face. Vertex at base of eyes wider than an eye, slightly narrowing anteriorly, as wide as an eye at its apex. Anterior margin of vertex in line with anterior margin of the eyes; frontal costa produced slightly ahead of an- terior margin of eyes. Medial carina of vertex extending slightly beyond anterior half of vertex between eyes. Lateral carinae of vertex present in anterior half of vertex between eyes. Fossulae shallow, elongated, and present in anterior two-thirds of vertex between eyes. Posterior margin of eyes distinctly in front of ante- rior margin of pronotum. Antennae. Filiform. As long as length between anterior margin of head and lateral lobes of pronotum. Scapus with a large notch in lateral view. The number of antennomeres is 16, with apical one consisting of fused segments, possibly 2 segments. Pronotum: Brachypronotal, tip of the pronotum slightly shy of tip of abdomen. Sub rectangular. Median carina raised in anterior part of pronotum above vertex giving a tectiform ap- pearance. Median carina sinuate, with most prominent eleva- tion at transition between prozona and metazona; undulation gradually decreases in elevation afterwards. Prozonal carinae elevated, clearly visible. Prozona sulcated with sulci of an irreg- ular shape. Lateral lobe sub-rectangular, sub-rounded. Ventral and tegminal sinus in shape of an obtuse angle. Humero-apical carina distinctly visible. Infrascapular area long; subrectangu- lar in anterior half, gradually narrowing toward end. Lateral area progressively widening caudally. Small nodules present Subtropical Sal forests Near the water sources of the subtropical regions throughout the surface of pronotum. Small nodules distributed over entire surface. Anterior margin of pronotum truncated. Prozonal carinae distinct, converging caudally. Median carina continuous, reaching apex of pronotum. Lateral lobes pro- jected downward; apex sub-rounded. Humeral angles oblique. Pronotum progressively narrowing caudally, ending in bluntly rounded apex. External lateral carina undulating. Internal lat- eral carina converges internally in last fifth, thereafter runs straight to tip, exposing wide lateral area. Two dark humeroapi- cal spots present. Wings: Alae not reaching apex of pronotum. Tegmina oval, en- tirely visible. Legs: Fore legs setulose over entire length. Fore femora about 3.36 times as long as wide; dorsal margin denticulate; ventral mar- gin erose. Fore tibia maculate; dorsal and ventral margins cren- ulate. Fore tarsus with first segment short (dark brown to black in color); second segment maculate, elongated, and with claws. Mid femora about 3.36 times as long as wide; dorsal margin den- ticulate; ventral margin erose; dorso-external and ventro-external carinae distinct; area enclosed between the ventro-external carina and ventral margin concave. Mid tibia Setose; dorsal and ventral margins erose; ventral margin with large spines. Mid tarsus with first segment short (dark brown to black in color); second segment maculate, elongated, and with claws. Hind femora robust; about 2.41 times as long as wide; its dorsal margin serrate, serrations uni- form throughout length of dorsal margin before being raised into a group of closely placed 5 dents just before antegenicular tooth; ventral margin erose; antegenicular teeth arc-shaped, tip pointed. Hind tibia Smooth; ventral margin with large spines. Hind tarsus with first segment long (dark brown to black in color), having pul- villi with spinose tips; second segment small, third elongated and with claws. Sexual dimorphism.—No dimorphism observed between sexes ex- cept body size and terminalia. Female: Ovipositor valves widened; serrated with pointed apex. Male: Subgenital plate widened; curv- ing upwards with blunt apex. Notes on variability.—Skejotettix kasalo sp. nov. is known to have two forms: macropronotal and long-winged (Figs 4J-L, 6, video: https://youtu.be/boJsRQK9ILSU), and brachypronotal and short- winged (Fig. 5). The undulation of the median carina in lateral view is more distinct and higher in the brachypronotal form than in the macropronotal form. JOURNAL OF ORTHOPTERA RESEARCH 2023, 32(1) M. SUBEDI 87 Fig. 5. Holotype (2) of Skejotettix kasalo sp. nov. A. Lateral view; B. Frontal view; C. Dorsal view. Paratype 2 (9°) of Skejotettix kasalo sp. nov. D. Lateral view; E. Frontal view; F. Dorsal view. Paratype 1 (@) of Skejotettix kasalo sp. nov. G. Lateral view; H. Frontal view; I. Dorsal view. Paratype 3 (3) of Skejotettix kasalo sp. nov. J. Lateral view; K. Frontal view; L. Dorsal view. Scale bars: 1 mm. JOURNAL OF ORTHOPTERA RESEARCH 2023, 32(1) 88 Fig. 6. Paratype 4 (2) of Skejotettix kasalo sp. nov. A. Lateral view; B. Frontal view; C. Dorsal view. Scale bars: 1 mm. M. SUBEDI The posterior margin of the compound eyes in most of the pinned specimens, including the holotype and those photo- graphed in nature, do not reach the anterior margin of the prono- tum. However, in some cases, such as paratype 2, the eyes reach the anterior margin of the pronotum due to the position of the head during the fixation process and the way it was pinned. Coloration.—The coloration is cryptic, enabling the individuals to perfectly blend in with their surroundings (Fig. 7). For example, individuals found on the stones with lichen growths are entirely (Fig. 7A) or partially (Fig. 7E) blue-green in coloration, while individuals found on the muddy walls are light to rusty brown in coloration (Fig. 7B-D, F-I). The coloration can be uniform throughout the body (Fig. 7A, B, D, EF I), mottled, or different in the anterior and posterior halves of the body (Fig. 7C, E, G, H). Nymphs.—(Fig. 8) The nymphs resemble the adults (Fig. 8) in col- oration and the majority of the traits. However, the nymphs differ from adult individuals in having shorter pronotum (pronotum nearly reaches the hind knees in brachypronotal and extends be- yond the hind knees in macropronotal adults), absence of wings, lack of antegenicular teeth on hind femora, poorly developed exter- nal genitalia, and the carinae being comparatively more distinctly expressed. The nymphs develop from one instar to the other by cast- ing off the exoskeleton in the form of exuviae (Fig. 9) in the process of molting. Typically, the parts from the tip of the vertex to the tip of the pronotum are opened dorsally (Fig. 9B) to let the individual tetrigid out while the other parts remain intact. The intactness of the exuvia might make them useful for some morphological studies. Measurements.—The key measurements of the holotype and para- types are presented in Table 3. Closely found species.—Two tetrigids, Criotettix cf. bispinosus (Fig. 10A) and Hedotettix sp. (Fig. 10B), were found alongside Ske- jotettix kasalo sp. nov. in the localities investigated. Table 3. Measurements (in mm) of the holotype (HT) and the paratypes (PT) of Skejotettix kasalo sp. nov. Body parts HT(Q) PT1(d) PT2(2) PT3(d) PT4(2) Avg. (2) Avg. (3) Body length 11.77 9.70 10.44 9.85 13.27 11.83 9.78 Vertex width 0.62 0.61 0.65 0.58 0.67 0.65 0.60 Eye width 0.69 0.68 0.70 0.65 0.71 0.70 0.67 Scutellum width 0.31 0.31 0.32 0.31 0.33 0.32 0.31 Pronotum length 9.11 8.65 8.67 6.74 14.19 10.66 7.70 Pronotum lobe width 4.54 4.08 4.47 3.66 4.79 4.60 3.87 Pronotum height 3.04 2.93 2.92 2.47 3.10 3.02 2.70 Tegmen length 1.71 1.75 1.80 1.34 2.14 1.88 1.55 Tegmen width 0.71 0.69 0.68 0.52 0.81 0.73 0.61 Alae length 6.05 6.61 5.58 4.43 12.58 8.07 5.52 Fore femur length 2.52 2.26 2.38 2.06 2.54 2.48 2.16 Fore femur width 0.75 0.72 0.70 0.61 0.68 0.71 0.67 Mid femur length 3.10 2.45 2.58 2.33 3.17 2.95 2.39 Mid femur width 0.99 0.82 0.69 0.67 0.89 0.86 0.75 Post femur length 6.81 6.51 6.63 5.41 6.45 6.63 5.96 Post femur width 2.82 2.73 2.76 2339 2.65 2.74 2.56 Hind tibia length 6.42 5.72 6.09 4.98 6.59 6.37 5.35 First tarsal segment (basal) length 0.98 0.99 LAS. 0.93 1.33 1.15 0.96 Third tarsal segment (apical) length (without claws) 0.78 0.77 0.84 0.77 0.94 0.85 0.77 Subgenital plate length - 0.89 - 0.72 - - 0.81 Subgenital plate width - 0.51 - 0.50 - - 0.51 Ovipositor dorsal valve length 1.22 - 1.08 - 1.34 1.21 - Ovipositor dorsal valve width 0.58 - 0.47 - 0.64 0.56 - Ovipositor ventral valve length 1.04 - 1.01 - 1.19 1.08 - Ovipositor ventral valve width 0.36 - 0.35 - 0.39 0.37 - JOURNAL OF ORTHOPTERA RESEARCH 2023, 32(1) M. SUBEDI Fig. 7. Variability of coloration in Skejotettix kasalo sp. nov. Food source.—The individuals of Skejotettix kasalo sp. nov. were Discussion observed feeding on food sources such as detritus (Fig. 11A), moss (Fig. 11B), lichens (Fig. 11C), and algae (Fig. 11D). Hitherto, the genus Skejotettix comprised species with distribu- Video links: A nymph feeding in the wild: https://youtu. tions restricted to the subtropical regions of Nepal (27.55362°N- be/6CeSekOTe4w; An adult feeding in the wild: https://youtu. 27.98745°N; 155-460 ma.s.l.) (Subedi 2022). With the discovery be/PWYw-7Rvt3U. of S. kasalo sp. nov. from the temperate regions (28.27569°N- JOURNAL OF ORTHOPTERA RESEARCH 2023, 32(1) 90 M. SUBEDI Fig. 8. Different nymphal instars of Skejotettix kasalo sp. nov. in natural habitat. (Note: the images are not on the same scale.) 28.27626°N; 1665-1920 m a.s.l.), the distribution range of this genus has expanded along the altitudinal and climate gradient. The new species has a forest-type habitat similar to that of S. netra- jyoti. However, the flora composition and climatic conditions of the forests are entirely different. There is not much known about the seasonality of all species of the genus. However, S. netrajyoti is observed only during the hot and humid summer months, with the nymphal stage as the probable overwintering stage (Subedi 2022). The observation of nymphs as the most abundant life stage during the last weeks of September (coinciding with the onset of winter) hints at nymphs as the probable overwintering stages and, thereby, the presence of seasonality in S. kasalo sp. nov. However, further studies and research should be done to verify this. Only two Tetrigidae species were found alongside S. kasalo sp. nov. One rea- son for the low number of species could be attributed to the time of the year (beginning of winter) of the study period. Taylor and Kerkut (1958) showed that poikilotherm insects show decreased activities with a decrease in the temperature of the surroundings. Furthermore, this was the first time the above-mentioned localities were studied for Tetrigidae, and the study was limited to the out- skirts of temperate forests. Therefore, future studies penetrating the unexplored areas during the summer months are certain to provide more information on the species composition and more insights into the biology, seasonality, and ecology of S. kasalo sp. nov. Until now, Skejotettix was known to be a brachypronotal and short-winged species (Ingrisch 2001b, Subedi 2022); in S. netra- Fig. 9. Exuviae of S. kasalo sp. nov. in natural habitat. (Note: A-C jyoti, the wings are reduced while hidden and absent in S. mug- are the images of different views of the same exuvia.) lingi. However, a macropronotal and long-winged form co-exists JOURNAL OF ORTHOPTERA RESEARCH 2023, 32(1) M. SUBEDI Tetrigids closely found with Skejotettix kasalo sp. nov. A. Criotettix cf. bispinosus; B. Hedotettix sp. Fig. 11. Individuals of Skejotettix kasalo sp. nov. on different food sources. A. Detritus on the muddy walls; B. Moss growth on the mud- dy walls; C. Lichen growth on the stones; D. Algal growth on the dirt road through the type locality (Note: A, C. Adults; B, D. Nymphs) JOURNAL OF ORTHOPTERA RESEARCH 2023, 32(1) 92 alongside the typical brachypronotal and short-winged form in S. kasalo sp. nov. This phenomenon is also known in other Tetri- ginae, such as some species of Paratettix (Rehn and Grant 1957, Tumbrinck 2015). The presence of both the macro- and brachy- pronotal forms in S. kasalo sp. nov. suggests that it might be a basal species on the evolutionary tree of the genus Skejotettix. It has a variable morphology from which the morphologies of the rest of the species in the genus could have been derived. It is also possible that apterousness appeared several times indepen- dently within Skejotettix. However, the evolutionary idea is just a hypothesis provided to direct future studies. Considering the variability of forms within S. kasalo and the similarities between Skejotettix and Ergatettix (denoted under Diagnosis), the hypoth- eses that the two genera are closely related and that there is an evolutionary relationship between the species of Skejotettix are important to mention but should be carefully explored through detailed morphological and molecular studies, which is beyond the scope of this paper. Acknowledgements I am thankful to my father, Krishna Raj Subedi, and my wife, Samita Soti, for accompanying me in the field trips, and my broth- er, Kshitij Subedi, for post processing of the images. 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